PARENS

The PARENS option controls whether negative numbers are represented in output with parentheses or a minus sign.

Data type

BOOLEAN

Syntax

PARENS = {YES|NO}

Arguments

YES: Encloses negative values in parentheses, instead of using a minus sign.
NO: Uses a minus sign to represent negative values. (Default)

Notes

Overriding PARENS

The setting of the PARENS option is overridden by a PAREN or NOPAREN attribute in a HEADING, REPORT, or ROW command. The PAREN attribute specifies the use of parentheses; the NOPAREN attribute specifies the use of a minus sign.

Allowing Space for Parentheses

When you use parentheses to represent negative values in a report, Oracle OLAP lines up the positive and negative values in the column. To do this, it reserves the right-most character in each numeric column for the closing parenthesis. The column is always reserved, even when there are no negative values in the output. Consequently, each value requires more space than when you use the minus sign, and you might need to increase your column width to accommodate your data.

Examples

Example 19-26 Showing Negative Values in Parentheses

In a report, you would like to show negative values in parentheses, so you first set PARENS to YES.

LIMIT line TO 'Cogs'
LIMIT division TO 'Sporting'
LIMIT month TO 'Jan96' TO 'Jun96'
PARENS = YES
DECIMALS = 0
REPORT DOWN month budget actual budget-actual

These statements produce the following output.

DIVISION: SPORTING
               --------------LINE--------------
               --------------COGS--------------
                                     BUDGET-ACT
MONTH            BUDGET     ACTUAL      UAL
-------------- ---------- ---------- ----------
Jan96            279,773    287,558     (7,785)
Feb96            323,982    315,299      8,683
Mar96            302,178    326,185    (24,007)
Apr96            386,101    394,544     (8,443)
May96            433,998    449,862    (15,864)
Jun96            448,042    457,348     (9,305)